Soul Food is closely related to the cuisine of the Southern United States. The term may have originated in the mid-1960s, when soul was a common word used to describe African-American culture (for example, soul music).They also comprise an important part of the cuisine of the American south, in general. Foods such as corn and cassava from the Americas, turnips from Morocco, and cabbage from Portugal would play an important part in the history of African-American cooking.

Soul food restaurants were black-owned businesses that served as neighborhood meeting places where people socialized and ate together.In addition, today's African American and Soul foodways can be traced back to influences from the Moors and Arawak communities. Ingredients such as parsley, mint, cumin, turmeric, and cloves were used in the Moors diet.